document.write("<b><h2>Diving Opal Reef with Calypso, 10 May 2009</b></h2>\n");
document.write("\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Judy was kind enough to offer me a lift in her car and we pulled into Pt\n");
document.write("Douglas about 7:50 in the morning, giving us enough time to have a good\n");
document.write("coffee before we boarded the boat. A good tip on parking at Pt Douglas\n");
document.write("marina is to park on the side of the road, close to the railway tracks\n");
document.write("adjacent to the side entrance to the marina. This is a lot less to walk to\n");
document.write("the boat, especially when hauling heavy wet gear back to the car.<br>\n");
document.write("Since we were in a bit early, Chris, son of the owner of Calypso and its\n");
document.write("skipper showed us around their other, brand-new boat, which does not run\n");
document.write("trips yet. It is divers-only boat and is very divers friendly. You can get\n");
document.write("around the whole boat without taking your wetsuit off! And the dive deck\n");
document.write("looks large and uncluttered. They are just waiting for the tourist traffic\n");
document.write("to pick up a bit before they start running it, but I think it is certainly\n");
document.write("worth a trip when it is in business!<br>\n");
document.write("Around 8:30 a very uncrowded Calypso boat pulled out of the marina\n");
document.write("carrying a compliment of Nautilus divers: Judy Nickles, Tracey Hale, Mark\n");
document.write("Azzopardi, Roe Hill, Alex Bulanov and Mark, Rose and Mel Jackson. It was\n");
document.write("the first club dive for Mark A and the Jacksons family. I hope they\n");
document.write("enjoyed their experience and will come back for the next month’s\n");
document.write("dives!<br>\n");
document.write(" <br>\n");
document.write("We had the boat almost all to ourselves! Granted, the forecast did not\n");
document.write("look rosy with 20-25 kt SE’ly winds with cloudy skies and rain. It turned\n");
document.write("out the ride out was pretty good and even the sun poked out of the clouds\n");
document.write("every now and then.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("The first dive site was Split Bommie. Our team of Judy, Mark and myself\n");
document.write("navigated the bommies counterclockwise making a detour to a small bommie\n");
document.write("on the side East of the main bommies. The water cooled to 26C and the viz\n");
document.write("was maybe 6-7m. So most of the interesting stuff was up on the top. The\n");
document.write("highlight of the dive for me was seeing a female Yellowback Tubelib\n");
document.write("(Labropsis xanthonota) which I had only seen in the Ribbon Reefs prior to\n");
document.write("that. There were plenty of plankton feeders on the bommie including Dotted\n");
document.write("Wrasse, Ternate Chromis and 2 or 3 species of Anthias. A large Shark\n");
document.write("Mackerel was  swimming close to the surface hunting the baitfish. A small\n");
document.write("Coral Trout was hunting the plantktivores and everything was scattering\n");
document.write("before it, hiding in the reef. The trout was making lighting fast dashes\n");
document.write("around trying to capture prey.<br>\n");
document.write("  <br>\n");
document.write("The second dive site was South End of North Opal Reef (a mouthful,\n");
document.write("shortened to SNO), which the boat dives regularly. And it shows: a very\n");
document.write("eager Wally (Humphead Maori Wrasse) was there greeting us as soon as we\n");
document.write("jumped in. In fact, I almost landed right on top of him! Our group went\n");
document.write("along the reef edge on the sand boundary. There were a lot of large female\n");
document.write("Redspot Wrasse around the small patches of branching coral. We spotted a\n");
document.write("hawksbill turtle hiding in the reef. Several club members found a\n");
document.write("Tasselled Wobbegong and took quite a few pictures! They forgot to call my\n");
document.write("Wobbegong Hotline in the process! I still cannot believe I didn’t get to\n");
document.write("see one! Back on the mooring line the faithful Wally was waiting like an\n");
document.write("obedient dog to pose for some photo ops with the divers.<br>\n");
document.write("                                          <br>\n");
document.write("After a very tasty lunch (and I do mean it was very good with lots of\n");
document.write("choices, especially the variety of vegetables blew me away) we moved to\n");
document.write("the third site, called The Caves (or The Cables, depends who you ask!),\n");
document.write("still within the Opal Reef. Mark Jackson joined our group as his family\n");
document.write("decided it was time for a surface break. We dropped in and went SE along\n");
document.write("the edge of the reef. Right by the mooring we spotted 3 Barramundi Cods\n");
document.write("and a Yellowmargin Triggerfish. <br>\n");
document.write(" <br>\n");
document.write("Then we came to a beautiful patch of small-branched Acropora corals with\n");
document.write("lots of critters hiding among them, including several cardinalfish\n");
document.write("species. It was time to turn around and head back to the boat. Topside,\n");
document.write("the conditions were cool and windy. Windward side of the reef was covered\n");
document.write("in breakers. Judy said that the third dive had made the day for her. I had\n");
document.write("to agree, that was a great dive!<br>\n");
document.write(" <br>\n");
document.write("The run back to port was surprisingly smooth as the club members\n");
document.write("diligently filled their log books and exchanged their dive stories. The\n");
document.write("pictures taken with Wally were a big hit. <br>\n");
document.write("Many thanks to the Calypso crew for a great trip and excellent service.\n");
document.write("All our needs were catered for very well, including some hot drinks on\n");
document.write("dive deck during the cool surface intervals!<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Alex Bulanov<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<b><h2>Club Dive -  Reef Magic…..Sunday April 5th 2009.</b></h2>\n");
document.write("\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("There were only the five of us who checked into the Reef Magic counter at\n");
document.write("8am, <br>\n");
document.write("Mirek Woolwich, Paul Hogan, Alex Boulanov, Chrys McGowan  and myself.<br>\n");
document.write("Alan, a local diver, keen to join the club also joined us for the day.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("With all the check-in procedures completed, dive buddies sorted out with\n");
document.write("the dive master, we sat back and enjoyed the 90 minute trip to Moore Reef.\n");
document.write(" We were on the old noisy Reef Magic boat, and it proved to be a popular\n");
document.write("move to the upper deck and talk to some of the visitors to Cairns and the\n");
document.write("GBR. <br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("A dive brief was conducted with the dive master giving us all the usual\n");
document.write("information on dive procedures.<br>\n");
document.write("When we came to the important part of the days dive, the dive site.<br>\n");
document.write("As you would all know, we hop on a tender to the far part of Moore Reef\n");
document.write("and do a nice drift dive and head back to the tender.<br>\n");
document.write("The first dive was to GT and the pinnacles, and due to popular request,\n");
document.write("the second was to Pressure Point.    <br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("The weather was good, although Alex told us that there may be a change on\n");
document.write("the day.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("On arrival at the pontoon, we made our way to “our” end of the deck and\n");
document.write("proceeded to get ourselves ready for the first dive.<br>\n");
document.write("There were to be only seven certified divers on the dive tender, so there\n");
document.write("was ample room for all.<br>\n");
document.write("A quick trip to the drop off point, and we were off on a drift dive.<br>\n");
document.write("Vis was a good 15 meters, water temperature close to 30 degrees, tropical\n");
document.write("fish were there to be seen, including a lot of large yellow box fish and\n");
document.write("all the usual.<br>\n");
document.write("After 45 minutes we surfaced to a choppy sea, medium current and light\n");
document.write("rain.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("After a fantastic lunch, and a quick snorkel with the tourists, we were\n");
document.write("kitting up for the second dive.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("I have never been to the Pressure Point before, but if I had I would have\n");
document.write("known to stay close to the reef. The current at that site is extremely\n");
document.write("strong and if you get caught in it, it is a hard swim to get back under\n");
document.write("the current, one of our party got caught in it and surfaced quite a\n");
document.write("distance away.<br>\n");
document.write("There were schools of tuna, chevron barracuda and many, many more large\n");
document.write("species.<br>\n");
document.write("Some of the group caught sight of white tip reef sharks.<br>\n");
document.write("I found this dive site quite stimulating, and it is no wonder that other\n");
document.write("Nautilus club members have recommended it after previous visits.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("After 50 minutes or so we found the dive tender and disembarked at the\n");
document.write("pontoon for the trip back to Cairns.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("We all agreed that the Reef Magic dive trip is one of the better club\n");
document.write("trips to the GBR and it is a pity that more members do not take advantage\n");
document.write("of their excellent service.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Peter Farmilo.  <br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<b><h2>Christmas Dive, 14 December 2008</b></h2>\n");
document.write("\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Christmas is an important thing for the Nautilus Diveclub. Not only is\n");
document.write("there a Christmas dinner, but of course also a Christmas Dive. We all went\n");
document.write("out with the Day Tripper, a slow boat we had all to ourselves. The company\n");
document.write("took care of the lunch; we took care of drinks and nibblies. For reasons I\n");
document.write("have not been able to ascertain, the task befell on me to take care of the\n");
document.write("beer. This happened to be a subject that long before the day came we took\n");
document.write("to the sea, stirred  some interest among the male athletes of our club. In\n");
document.write("an email Eden wrote: can we get something other than XXXX Gold, it’s yuk\n");
document.write("(so is Carlton Light for that matter) maybe Mid-strength? Then Dave wrote\n");
document.write("that he had bought XXXX before, and that the members had obediently drunk\n");
document.write("the stuff without complaining. But he really didn’t know whether they had\n");
document.write("liked it. So which beer should I buy? I’m a wandering stranger in the\n");
document.write("great variety of Australian beers, which in my opinion are all of\n");
document.write("excellent quality, but in general fall noticeably short in one of the most\n");
document.write("important features that makes beer beer, alcohol.  I also find the\n");
document.write("Australian beers in the possession of an excellent taste, although often\n");
document.write("very little of it. So I simply drove to the nearest 24/7 drive through\n");
document.write("bottle shop (Australia is the only country I ever visited with 24/7 drive\n");
document.write("through bottle shops. I think it is a clever move in the battle against\n");
document.write("binge drinking. With these shops you can space out your alcohol\n");
document.write("consumption evenly over the 24 x 7 = 168 hours of the week), and asked\n");
document.write("what was the strongest beer on special. This happened to be James Boag’s\n");
document.write("from Tasmania, and luckily it was drunk with enthusiasm. But this happened\n");
document.write("all after the dives I will describe here under.<br>\n");
document.write("After a slow and leisurely run of 2 and a half hour we reached our dive\n");
document.write("spot; a shallow and well protected part of the reef. We all went in the\n");
document.write("water, which was around 29 degrees and the visibility was quite limited.\n");
document.write("Grant was our Santa Claus. He donned himself in a beautiful red wetsuit,\n");
document.write("with a white hairy mouthpiece and a red and white hood. Good on you,\n");
document.write("Grant!<br>\n");
document.write("We pottered a bit around as on a Sunday stroll. Look a fish here, look a\n");
document.write("fish there. Hey, Santa Claus with flippers and a bottle of air. Lovely\n");
document.write("coral. Nice whether. Let’s not be late for lunch. <br>\n");
document.write("After lunch our dive master offered us two choices (strange expression\n");
document.write("though: two choices. I think I can make only one choice):  to relocate the\n");
document.write("boat to a dangerous spot with strong currents and high waves where we would\n");
document.write("see absolutely nothing, or to stay and make a somewhat different foray in\n");
document.write("the surrounding waters. We opted for the last possibility and all plunged\n");
document.write("in again to circumnavigate a bommy some 100  metres from the boat. That\n");
document.write("all went very well and on returning to the boat there was quite a queue in\n");
document.write("the water of fellow divers, apparently all eager to start with the nibblies\n");
document.write(" and the booze. We had yellow champagne, pink champagne and beer (James\n");
document.write("Boag’s, as you know by now) and lots of tasty nibblies. The already very\n");
document.write("animated conversation became even more animated as we sowly drifted back\n");
document.write("to Cairns.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("It was very pleasant to have a boat all to ourselves that takes a long\n");
document.write("time to reach it’s destination and it was very pleasant that so many\n");
document.write("members participated in this classic Christmas dive which is sure to get\n");
document.write("many more instalments.  <br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Rigo <br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<b><h2>Nautilus Club dive at Yap…November 19th to the 23rd.</b></h2>\n");
document.write("\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("When one travels in this part of the world, you had better be prepared to\n");
document.write("fly between 1am and 6am, bags packed and in the lobby by 12.30am, leave\n");
document.write("the Palau airport and arrive in your bed in your hotel at Yap at\n");
document.write("4.30am.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("The Manta Ray Resort was to be our digs for the four day dive trip.  <br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("After a short sleep, breakfast at 8am and in the dive boat at noon for 2\n");
document.write("dives.<br>\n");
document.write("But we’ve just completed 6 or 7 three dive days on Palau, we can handle\n");
document.write("anything. The main topic at breakfast is generally about “How’s the ears\n");
document.write("this morning?” Popping nicely thank you!<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Well, quite different diving at Yap, although similar dive boats, 2 x\n");
document.write("150hp outboards and our destination, Mi’l channel, just inside the outer\n");
document.write("reef.<br>\n");
document.write("Our outward trip is through the mangrove channels. With a tidal range of a\n");
document.write("couple of meters, some trips had to be delicately manoeuvred  <br>\n");
document.write("But Mi’l channel is where the Manta’s have their cleaning stations.\n");
document.write("Unfortunately the Manta’s where not in attendance for the first two days\n");
document.write("or so, however all was not lost, other fish were in large numbers.<br>\n");
document.write("Three of our dive group spent 20 minutes looking in awe at a 2 meter\n");
document.write("female black tip reef shark. She circled continuously only a meter or so\n");
document.write("in front of us, a beautiful sight to behold, look at those eyes! <br>\n");
document.write("In the end our diminishing air dictated that we move, she certainly was\n");
document.write("not going to.<br>\n");
document.write("Shortly after we saw a Giant Trevaly at a cleaning station with many\n");
document.write("cleaner wrasse in attendance. A pleasant drift along a wall back to the\n");
document.write("boat completed a great dive.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("And then it happened on day 3. Still on Mi’l channel, we were sitting or\n");
document.write("lying on the sand in 21 meters with a visibility of only 5 meters, a Manta\n");
document.write("Ray appeared out of the gloom.<br>\n");
document.write("She was a beautiful sight, how graceful, how big, how low she came to us,\n");
document.write("only a meter or so above our heads, she circled and made several more\n");
document.write("passes.<br>\n");
document.write("We later learned that the Manta was a female, 14 feet from tip to tip,\n");
document.write("quite old, and named Valerina.<br>\n");
document.write("A spiralling down “no deco” gauge, (must get Nitrox certified), forced me\n");
document.write("to gain height but “she” had gone. <br>\n");
document.write("The sight of the Manta will stay with me for ever. <br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("The final dive at Yap was a “Shark feed” dive in water that equalled the\n");
document.write("visibility at Palau. Some said the visibility was 50 meters.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("The Grey Reef shark count was estimated at 25 to 30, large, up to\n");
document.write("2.5meters, several Black tip and very many Red Snapper. Many small reef\n");
document.write("fish made the sight very exciting.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Some of the interesting sights that I saw were.<br>\n");
document.write(". <br>\n");
document.write("A large shark pulled a very large piece of fish head off the bait ball,\n");
document.write("immediately nearly every other shark took off in pursuit. The shark headed\n");
document.write("strait for the observation group, and in particular our President Dave\n");
document.write("Meyer. The thoughts of everyone being “I hope he doesn’t drop that dammed\n");
document.write("fish head in Dave’s lap ! He didn’t but he then he headed towards Kevin\n");
document.write("Kirk. Kevin threw his arm up in a defensive move, I laughed loudly, and\n");
document.write("the shark swallowed his fish head.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("With so many sharks and so much “action” in the water, I guess other\n");
document.write("divers had memorable moments also.<br>\n");
document.write(" <br>\n");
document.write("After 30 minutes or so, the meal had been consumed, the sharks dispersed\n");
document.write("and we drifted over the feed zone with the sharks easily seen below and\n");
document.write("above us.<br>\n");
document.write("There is a DVD available on the Yap dives and the shark feed. Please email\n");
document.write("me and I’ll put you on the “loan file”<br>\n");
document.write("     <br>\n");
document.write("Our time at the Manta Ray Resort culminated with the wedding of Garry\n");
document.write("Stirling and his lovely bride Lindy Gow.<br>\n");
document.write("There had never been a wedding at the resort and the staff put on a\n");
document.write("fantastic display of Melanesian hospitality. They are lovely people.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("After the colourful ceremony and a sumptuous meal of hot and cold meats,\n");
document.write("crayfish and other seafood, the evening entertainment of traditional\n");
document.write("dancing, costumes and fire dancers followed.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Unfortunately the wake up call at 12.30am for the departure at 4am to Guam\n");
document.write("spelt the end of a very wonderful trip to Palau and Yap.   <br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("This is a recommendation to all at the Nautilus Club. When the overseas\n");
document.write("trips are announced next year and other years to come, do all that you can\n");
document.write("to get on a trip.<br>\n");
document.write("The fellowship, not to mention the diving and what you learn about your\n");
document.write("own capabilities underwater are without question. <br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Peter Farmilo<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<b><h2>Club Dive Trip to Palau. November 10th to 19th 2008.</b></h2>\n");
document.write("\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Imagine, if you can, heading out to a dive site in a 35 ft dive boat\n");
document.write("powered along by 2 x 225 hp outboard motors at 33 knots  over magnificent\n");
document.write("still azure coloured waters past the rock islands to your dive site just a\n");
document.write("mere 40 minutes away.<br>\n");
document.write("A typical dive boat carries 8 divers with driver and dive master.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("As you near the designated dive site you notice that the 29 to 30 degree\n");
document.write("water is so clear that you can see the reef and sandy bottom some 35\n");
document.write("meters or so below you.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("A quick backwards tumble from the dive boat and you see the most\n");
document.write("magnificent sight that a scuba diver could hope to see. With a visibility\n");
document.write("of unimagined clarity, a reef that has all the colour and life that the\n");
document.write("brochures had promised, you know that you are in Scuba Diving Heaven.   \n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("This scenario was repeated up to three times a day for six or seven\n");
document.write("days.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Many of the dive sites defy adequate words to convey to the reader the\n");
document.write("awesome sights that confronted us.<br>\n");
document.write("One particular dive sight impressed me so much that I will try to give you\n");
document.write("a picture of what I saw.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("We arrived at “German Channel” at 9am and tied up with 5 other similar\n");
document.write("boats, approximately 50 divers in all.<br>\n");
document.write("On entering the water and contacting my dive buddy and the dive leader, I\n");
document.write("could see that we were in about 35 meters of water over a nice white sandy\n");
document.write("bottom with a reef not far away. The sight of 50 other divers hovering\n");
document.write("between the 10 to 30 meters depth caused no problem as the separation\n");
document.write("between the groups was adequate.<br>\n");
document.write("Tim, our dive guide motioned for us to follow him to an area where we\n");
document.write("waited for the “action” to start.<br>\n");
document.write("After a brief wait, several 3 meter grey reef sharks appeared, many white\n");
document.write("and black tips sharks together with their accompanying 50 or so red and\n");
document.write("black snapper. <br>\n");
document.write("An unknown number of small blue tailed trigger fish, literally thousands\n");
document.write("of small yellow and white pyramid angel fish, and thousands of the small\n");
document.write("colourful fish that you would expect to see on most dives.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Suddenly we were aware of a lone Manta Ray, estimated at 15 feet from tip\n");
document.write("to tip, in a feeding frenzy doing incredible loop the loops not far from\n");
document.write("us. In awe at the sight it may have been possible to forget to\n");
document.write("breathe.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("When that action finished, a large Eagle Ray gave us his display a flying\n");
document.write("skills, with several close passes. We also saw a very rare Ornate Ray.\n");
document.write("This beautiful specimen is very rare and caused much discussion after the\n");
document.write("dive.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Hand signals between the divers were totally inadequate to convey our\n");
document.write("feelings to each other. That would come after the dive finished.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Before that would happen though, we went on a very fast drift dive\n");
document.write("covering several hundred meters along the German Channel. We were in mind\n");
document.write("to emulate the actions of the Manta and Eagle Rays.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("The dive came to an end with the dive guide Tim inflating his “safety\n");
document.write("sausage” at 10 to 15 meters, and gathering us all to do a safety stop at 5\n");
document.write("meters.<br>\n");
document.write("On surfacing our dive boat was there to pick us up.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("This type of dive, whether it be a “hook dive” a “wall dive” a deep drop\n");
document.write("off or the many other type of dives on offer during our time with Fish ‘n\n");
document.write("Fins was repeated every time.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Other famous dive sites that we visited were “Blue Holes”, “Blue Corner”\n");
document.write("“Virgin Blue Hole” “Ulong Channel” and many others.<br>\n");
document.write("For the wreck enthusiasts, there were ample occasions to explore the many\n");
document.write("WW2 Japanese naval wrecks.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("There was also an occasion to explore a cave named appropriately\n");
document.write("“Chandelier Cave”<br>\n");
document.write("This 4 chamber cave has stalactites in each chamber and is very dark, time\n");
document.write("to get out the torch. The water is extremely clear and the air in each\n");
document.write("chamber is sweet and nice to breathe. <br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Fish ‘n Fins supplied a nice individual lunch each day. This was eaten on\n");
document.write("a nice rock island with pristine white beach and maintained by the local\n");
document.write("Parks people.<br>\n");
document.write("As an aside, we were able to inspect the site of the TV show “Survivor\n");
document.write("Palau” filmed on Ulong island in 2004.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("On returning to the dive base, ample washing tanks and a secure dive gear\n");
document.write("locker was supplied for the next activities. <br>\n");
document.write("     <br>\n");
document.write("Peter Farmilo.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<b><h2>Trip Report Tusa T5 - August 10th 2008</b></h2>\n");
document.write("\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Well the pervading memory of the day will be the cold! The water\n");
document.write("temperature remained a constant 24 degrees and conditions below the water\n");
document.write("were rather pleasant, if you kept moving! Visibility was  20metres plus\n");
document.write("and fish galore were about to delight us. However very cold winds of 25-30\n");
document.write("knots blew all day and had us shivering and miserable at times on the dive\n");
document.write("deck. Some were detouring under the hot showers with their gear on to try\n");
document.write("to get some relief while waiting.  Between our first and second dives, the\n");
document.write("crew came around handing out hot cups of soup. That was a much appreciated\n");
document.write("way of installing central heating. Good one Tusa!  It was a relief that\n");
document.write("the air-conditioning was not as cold as usual so we could retreat inside\n");
document.write("for comfort. Tusa 5 is an extremely comfortable vessel and it is always a\n");
document.write("very relaxing day.<br>\n");
document.write("There were ample crew, operating in their usual efficient yet friendly\n");
document.write("manner. All operations go  like a well oiled machine. A new service (to me\n");
document.write("anyway) was staff on the platform to assist with putting fins on, and\n");
document.write("removing them after the dive. This was of no help for  Dave Rosie. He had\n");
document.write("a fin clip malfunction on initial entry and quickly disappeared below to\n");
document.write("retrieve the fin. His buddies (Amanda and Judy), wondering at his hasty\n");
document.write("indication that he was descending and prompt descent, soon followed to\n");
document.write("rendezvous with him and his fin on the sand.<br>\n");
document.write("Skipper Dean found us a great sheltered spot at Saxon Reef and we made our\n");
document.write("first two dives there at Magic Wall. After an appetising lunch, we moved to\n");
document.write("Hastings Reef  and made our third dive  at the fish bowl, another sheltered\n");
document.write("site that allowed a comfortable dive. New members Jayme and Greg scored a\n");
document.write("bonus wall drop off for the last dive. Greg is a former photographer on\n");
document.write("Tusa. Meanwhile, Dave Rosie was busy networking, and had two guys keen to\n");
document.write("check out our club website. The benefits of membership appealed to them\n");
document.write("and they plan to look at signing up before August 31. Well done Dave. It\n");
document.write("is no secret that club membership has social and financial benefits.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Judy Nickles.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<b><h2>Nautilus Club Dive on Reef Quest June 8th</b></h2> <br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("     The club dive on 08 Jun was with Deep Sea Diver&acirc;€™s Den aboard\n");
document.write("Reef Quest. Despite the breezy forecast of 20-25 knots, the following\n");
document.write("brave soles decided to go diving: Frank, Alex, Garry, Lindy, Alan, Toni,\n");
document.write("Christian, Nadine, Linda x 2, Stuart, Tracey, Sarah, Eden, Jorg and new\n");
document.write("club member Chris.<br>\n");
document.write("      Check in was at the Pier Shopping Centre, where dive cards were\n");
document.write("sighted and reef tax paid, before boarding passes were handed out. Once on\n");
document.write("the boat, dive paperwork was filled out and I think many people were\n");
document.write("struggling with some of the questions ie when was your last dive medical\n");
document.write("and how many night dives have been completed and when. I thought we were\n");
document.write("going diving during the day! Anyway, we handed the paperwork over to one\n");
document.write("of the many friendly crew on the crowded dive deck and set up our\n");
document.write("equipment.<br>\n");
document.write("       Once underway at approximately 9.00, the usual staff introduction\n");
document.write("and safety brief took place in the lower lounge area. After the brief\n");
document.write("everyone made themselves comfortable and moved around the boat at leisure.\n");
document.write("A short time later, we were all rounded up for a dive brief in the lower\n");
document.write("lounge. Dive paperwork was handed back to most people with highlighted\n");
document.write("areas for correction. As I said before some grey matter was being tested,\n");
document.write("especially on a Sunday morning, regarding some of the questions. I\n");
document.write("wondered if we all had to walk in a straight line while rubbing our\n");
document.write("bellies and patting our heads, to be allowed in the water! Once sorted,\n");
document.write("dive cards and log books were inspected and dive buddies organised. The\n");
document.write("dive brief was quite thorough, and sounded more like a Dive Refresher\n");
document.write("Course, but we sure new how to put on our dive mask&acirc;€™s on after\n");
document.write("it.<br>\n");
document.write("      We arrived at Saxon Reef at 10.40 and proceeded to the dive deck,\n");
document.write("where some people were struggling to move due to motion sickness. The\n");
document.write("first dive was at Sandra&acirc;€™s, where most headed towards two large\n");
document.write("bommies. Just before carrying out a giant stride on the starboard midship\n");
document.write("side, the friendly photographer took our photos. Not long after descending\n");
document.write("a few of us saw a White tip Reef Shark. Around the corner of one of the\n");
document.write("bommies, another White tip was resting in the sand. When we moved closer\n");
document.write("it moved on to another spot in the sand. Eventually it swam off with its\n");
document.write("cleaner Wrasse. In between the two bommies a turtle was having a rest,\n");
document.write("with its head under a ledge. My observant wife Toni attracted my attention\n");
document.write("to it and we both had a closer look. We pointed it out to other divers\n");
document.write("swimming past as it was well camouflaged. Other fish seen were a Potato\n");
document.write("Cod, Banner fish and Barramundi Cod. The visibility was 20 metres and we\n");
document.write("cracked a depth of around 16metres After a bottom time of 40 minutes there\n");
document.write("was quite a queue of divers waiting to get back on board.<br>\n");
document.write("     After approximately a 30 minute surface interval we were back in the\n");
document.write("water. We headed out on an easterly bearing, away from the two bommies.\n");
document.write("Below the photographer took our photos, one holding a small Aussie flag\n");
document.write("and one without. On the way to some coral formations, a turtle in mid\n");
document.write("water was seen. There was a fair bit of dead coral around, however there\n");
document.write("were still some pristine areas to view. Potato Cod, a lone Hump Headed\n");
document.write("Parrotfish, a school of Yellow Tailed Fusiliers, Clams and Sea Squirts\n");
document.write("were in the area to view. <br>\n");
document.write("      When everyone was on board we gently motored along to a place called\n");
document.write("Clipper, which was still part of Saxon Reef. We had a great lunch and after\n");
document.write("a surface interval of approximately 50 minutes we were diving again at\n");
document.write("1.55. We were required to be back on board by 2.30, so this was going to\n");
document.write("be a short dive. We headed out on a south east heading and swam around\n");
document.write("some small bommies. On the way back to the boat my wife and I swam with a\n");
document.write("turtle on the sandy bottom. <br>\n");
document.write("       After three dives, we reflected on how quick the day went. Once the\n");
document.write("crew was happy everyone was on board we gently motored over to the live\n");
document.write("aboard &acirc;€śOcean Quest&acirc;€ť to drop off and pick up divers. Many\n");
document.write("thanks to the Reef Quest crew, especially Brad and Stu who did a great job\n");
document.write("on the dive deck.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Alan McMahon<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<b><h2>Dive report Calypso Dive, Port Douglas 6th April 2008</b></h2>\n");
document.write("\n");
document.write(" <br>\n");
document.write("Sunday 6  April &amp; what a beautiful day it was as we made our way from\n");
document.write("Cairns to Port along one of the most scenic seaside roads we have ever\n");
document.write("seen. <br>\n");
document.write("Myself &amp; Garry had driven up from Townsville the day before making the\n");
document.write("most of the many Geocaches (Geocaching is a worldwide orienteering game\n");
document.write("utilising gps to seek out hidden caches containing trinkets left &amp;\n");
document.write("swapped by visitors from all over the world) hidden along the way, so we\n");
document.write("were already on a high before we even started sucking all that\n");
document.write("nitrogen.<br>\n");
document.write("The forecast for the Sunday was for 20 plus knot winds but we were not\n");
document.write("going to let a little breeze dampen our spirits. The day dawned beautiful\n");
document.write("&amp; sunny &amp; the forecast winds seemed at this stage to be a non\n");
document.write("event.<br>\n");
document.write("We arrived at the marina in plenty of time to get our gear stowed &amp;\n");
document.write("settle down to the mandatory cuppa &amp; paperwork before departing our\n");
document.write("berth. <br>\n");
document.write("It soon became apparent that the numbers of passengers were going to be\n");
document.write("few, in fact the Nautilus club members being 9 in total pretty much had\n");
document.write("the boat to ourselves except for another 6 non club passengers. So for all\n");
document.write("you Nautilus members who missed this trip all I can say is HOW SAD FOR\n");
document.write("YOU.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("The Calypso operation out of Port (not to be confused with the Calypso\n");
document.write("operation out of Mission Beach) is without doubt the best team I have\n");
document.write("dived with to date, the boat is incredibly comfortable (especially when\n");
document.write("it's almost empty) but just everything about this vessel makes it so easy\n");
document.write("to dive from.<br>\n");
document.write("We set sail at around 0900hrs &amp; made headway into a pleasant 15 to 20\n");
document.write("knot southeasterly breeze which had virtually no effect on the stability\n");
document.write("of this magnificent catamaran &amp;  reached our first dive site at about\n");
document.write("1030hrs which was on Opal Reef at a mooring known as Split Bommie. Our\n");
document.write("merry band of divers included Alex &amp; Al, Chris, Tony &amp; Rob, Carmel\n");
document.write("&amp; Gerry &amp; Garry &amp; myself. <br>\n");
document.write("The conditions were slight due to the lee of the reef so entry was a\n");
document.write("comfortable giant stride &amp; a gentle descent down the mooring line to\n");
document.write("the bottom where we followed our crews advice &amp; did a figure of eight\n");
document.write("around these two quite healthy bommies with lots of damsels &amp;\n");
document.write("fusiliers but most impressive of all was the school of 14 (I counted them)\n");
document.write("Hump Headed or Buffalo parrot fish. These giants of the species measured\n");
document.write("around a metre or so each &amp; were ferociously attacking the coral with\n");
document.write("their massive hump heads &amp; beak like mouths, the sound of them biting\n");
document.write("the coral is quite loud &amp; the scars left on the coral impressive, no\n");
document.write("less impressive was the amount of discharge from their rear end which\n");
document.write("reduced our visibility from a reasonable 15mtrs to about 5mtrs in close\n");
document.write("proximity to them. <br>\n");
document.write("Fifty minutes later we were back at the duckboard of our most impressive\n");
document.write("dive vessel for an easy exit up the wide easily manageable steps that hang\n");
document.write("down well into the water. Back on-board everyone was abuzz about how great\n");
document.write("the dive was whilst partaking of cake &amp; refreshments whilst the\n");
document.write("Skipper &amp; crew gently transported us to our next dive site.<br>\n");
document.write("Approximately 40mins later we were once again in the water for our next\n");
document.write("dive still on Opal Reef but at a site known as Blue Buoy. Unfortunately\n");
document.write("this dive turned out to be more of an exploratory dive due to the somewhat\n");
document.write("vague directions given by the crew for those of us whom it was suggested\n");
document.write("should go &amp; check out this nice bommie just off the bow past a\n");
document.write("formation they call Ayres Rock &amp; then you will see it! Well I can at\n");
document.write("least say that we found Ayres Rock (which I discovered later that most of\n");
document.write("our number didn't.) But once there we were suppose to be able to see our\n");
document.write("goal but after circumnavigating Ayres Rock twice saw nothing but sand but\n");
document.write("as luck would have it (at least we thought luck) we found the dive guide\n");
document.write("from our boat leading a couple of the non club divers past Ayres Rock\n");
document.write("&amp; as we assumed to the allusive bommie we could not find, so we tagged\n");
document.write("along &amp; after about 10 or so minutes of sand &amp; more sand &amp;\n");
document.write("still more sand it became apparent that the dive guide was lost, so by\n");
document.write("this time our air was below 100bar &amp; we had no choice but to stick\n");
document.write("with our friendly guide in the hope that he could salvage our dive &amp;\n");
document.write("at least get us to something we could ogle or at the very least back to\n");
document.write("the boat. Well he did get us back to the boat after he surfaced &amp; got\n");
document.write("his bearings but unfortunately all we got to see this dive apart from lots\n");
document.write("of sand was a portion of the bommie that the boat was moored beside as we\n");
document.write("ascended the mooring line to the surface. <br>\n");
document.write("A little disappointed by our second dive but still in good spirits in the\n");
document.write("knowledge that we still had another dive to go we settled into a lavish\n");
document.write("smorgasbord lunch &amp; spoke of our adventures trying to find Ayres Rock\n");
document.write("&amp; the allusive bommie beyond, maybe next time. <br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Lunch having been devoured we were all keen to hit the water again &amp;\n");
document.write("at around 1400hrs we all descended upon a site known as The Wedge. <br>\n");
document.write("The plan this time was to follow our dive guide again but this time he\n");
document.write("knew exactly where he was going &amp; I must say it was spectacular, even\n");
document.write("though we had to make our way head on into a current of about one half a\n");
document.write("knot and at a depth on average of about 6 to 8mtrs with wave action on a \n");
document.write("drying reef (due to low tide) causing considerable surge which did cause\n");
document.write("some discomfort for some of our number, yet the coral here was prolific\n");
document.write("&amp; the fish life was abundant in the turbulent waters, mostly all the\n");
document.write("smaller reef fishes like angles, butterfly's, damsels, wrasses &amp; a\n");
document.write("large school of black surgeon fish intermingled with colorful parrot fish.\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Once through the wedge there was plenty of respite form the current in the\n");
document.write("many beautiful shallow sandy canyons on the other side &amp; of course the\n");
document.write("return was pretty much an enjoyable drift dive, this was a wonderful dive\n");
document.write("&amp; more than made up for the second dive.<br>\n");
document.write("Back on-board after about 50 minutes again &amp; it was time to degear\n");
document.write("shower settle back for a pleasant trip back to Port.<br>\n");
document.write("Much Thanks to Margit who arranged this trip even though she &amp; Dave\n");
document.write("were off in Vanuatu diving the Coolidge (look forward to hearing all about\n");
document.write("the trip) &amp; of course to the marvelous crew who took care of us so well\n");
document.write("as I'm lead to understand they always do, I will certainly be singing their\n");
document.write("praises to all &amp; sundry &amp; look forward to diving with them\n");
document.write("again.<br>\n");
document.write(" <br>\n");
document.write("Happy bubbles, Lindy Gow.<br>\n");
document.write("________________________________________<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<b><h2><i>Coming up for Ayr</b></h2></i><br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("We set out to the traditional yearly Yongala dive on the 29th of March.\n");
document.write("Half the party, Margit, Peter, Kevin and Anne, Alex, Jannemieke and I\n");
document.write("(Rigo) went with a small bus, courtesy of Peter, who will further play a\n");
document.write("significant role for me in this diving venture. People say the Yongala is\n");
document.write("near Townsville, but that proved to be incorrect. The Yongala rests near\n");
document.write("Ayr. But who has ever heard of Ayr? Well, we did.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Coincidence and history are everywhere. When we were still in Holland\n");
document.write("planning to go to Australia, a year ago, a good friend of ours told us she\n");
document.write("had been born in Ayr, where her father did something with sugar cane. And\n");
document.write("when we arrived in this tiny settlement, in our quest to see the remains\n");
document.write("of the tragically perished Yongala, we discovered that we had to go to\n");
document.write("Alva Beach. Well, the cruel Duke of Alva was sent to the Netherlands to\n");
document.write("subdue the insurrection of the Dutch against the Spaniards. On the first\n");
document.write("of April 1572 Alva suffered a major blow by losing one of the Dutch\n");
document.write("cities, Den Briel, to the Dutch. And we arrived in Alva on the 29 of\n");
document.write("March. So near.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("We left Cairns at 6.20 am, to arrive at 12.15pm in Alva Beach. Phil and\n");
document.write("Chris and Gary and Lindy are already at the dive shop. We&acirc;€™re a bit\n");
document.write("latish, so hurry hurry, gear ready, wetsuit on, go go go. <br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("We are going to dive with dive operator Yongala Express, a small business\n");
document.write("in Alva Beach. Above the dive shop is a guesthouse, simple but stylish and\n");
document.write("clean, where we athletes will spend the night. From the dive shop we go\n");
document.write("with old Landcruisers to the beach, a tractor tows the boat on a trailer\n");
document.write("through the sand. The wind is around 20 knots, and it is a fresh to\n");
document.write("frightening bumpy ride of 45 minutes in the small boat banging the waves,\n");
document.write("to a place called Nowhere, marked with some buoys. <br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("For an inexperienced diver like myself it is a bit daunting, to simply\n");
document.write("disappear in the endless mass of grey waves. Stories told on the road to\n");
document.write("Ayr about horror dives to the Yongala, where due to very strong currents\n");
document.write("you have to clasp yourself to ropes and parts of the wreck, knowing that\n");
document.write("the slightest loosening of your grip will end with you washed up at the\n");
document.write("shores near Townsville, come vividly to my mind.<br>\n");
document.write("But we are luckily in the company of very experienced divers, and Peter\n");
document.write("asks us to come with him, so we know where to go. But the first dive\n");
document.write("doesn&acirc;€™t start good for me and regrettably, it goes from bad to\n");
document.write("worse. I had put on my 5mm suit after chilly experiences with lighter\n");
document.write("wetsuits. Immediately after deflating my BCD I notice that I\n");
document.write("didn&acirc;€™t take enough lead. Or is it stress and is my breathing out\n");
document.write("of control? I don&acirc;€™t know, but halfway through the dive I\n");
document.write("communicate the problem with Peter, because I fear I won&acirc;€™t be able\n");
document.write("to stay down for my safety stops. So Peter lets me delve into his back\n");
document.write("pocket for a 3-pounder lead weight. I am much reassured but I am eating\n");
document.write("air at a very high rate and soon have to make my way to the surface. I use\n");
document.write("the extra bottle at 10m to supplement my air for my safety stops. A new\n");
document.write("experience! Especially because I happen to place the mouthpiece in upside\n");
document.write("down causing me to drink lots of seawater. When I&acirc;€™m back on the\n");
document.write("boat I donate this water, plus my breakfast, back to the sea. Fair is\n");
document.write("fair.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("And then we made a bad decision. Because of my bad buoyancy and high use\n");
document.write("of air, we assume that we are a burden for Peter and Alex. So Jannemieke\n");
document.write("askes Ryan, the dive guide, whether he could accompany us.  When Peter\n");
document.write("finds out about it he is devastated. &acirc;€śNever, never, never before\n");
document.write("have I been sacked as a dive guide&acirc;€ť, he laments. He is not angry,\n");
document.write("but deeply disappointed. And rightly so. We&acirc;€™ve hurt his soul. A\n");
document.write("truly terrible thing to do to the man who saved me on the first dive from\n");
document.write("disaster! <br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("I don&acirc;€™t know what to do, but I try the Australian way.\n");
document.write("&acirc;€śCome on mate&acirc;€ť, I say, &acirc;€śdon&acirc;€™t whine. We\n");
document.write("have to set some standards here.&acirc;€ť Luckily this worked well. The\n");
document.write("next day Peter is completely over it. We dump the dive guide from the\n");
document.write("school and we go happily together again. Great soul.<br>\n");
document.write("It is late when we head home. The wind has calmed down a bit, but Margit\n");
document.write("gets cold to the bone on the way back, she can&acirc;€™t stop shivering.\n");
document.write("Phil and Chris share a towel to keep warm, but hurriedly cast it away when\n");
document.write("I want to make a photo. Ah, well. <br>\n");
document.write("We have to wade to the shore. Margit and Dave drive back to Cairns that\n");
document.write("night and the rest of us go in Peter&acirc;€™s bus in search of hot food.\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("We end up at the Anzac Memorial Club in Ayr. For us Dutchies this is a new\n");
document.write("experience. There are so many cars in front of it, we thought we\n");
document.write("wouldn&acirc;€™t get a table. But these are big enterprises. Tout le monde\n");
document.write("of Ayr was there. Families celebrating birthdays of grandchildren, the\n");
document.write("young and in-love ones dining in groups, the boys with one big hand around\n");
document.write("the neck of their girl, signalling &acirc;€śthis girl is mine&acirc;€ť, a\n");
document.write("singer is performing in the bar. The food is excellent. Back in the dive\n");
document.write("hostel, we try to watch the video &acirc;€śThe Life of Brian&acirc;€ť, but\n");
document.write("one after another slinks to his/her bed and sleeps within minutes. It was\n");
document.write("an exhausting day.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Next morning, after breakfast, we leave for our second round of diving. We\n");
document.write("did 2 dives on Saturday afternoon and 2 on Sunday morning. Water\n");
document.write("temperature was around 23 to 24 degrees. Sunday was somewhat warmer and\n");
document.write("the visibility was somewhat better. Saturday no sun, Sunday some. The\n");
document.write("Yongala is an impressive wreck and very popular with fish and other\n");
document.write("animals like turtles and snakes&acirc;€&brvbar;. and divers of course. The\n");
document.write("abundance of sea life makes it a feast to be down there.  Batfish, Cevron\n");
document.write("Barracuda, Hawksbill Turtles, Olive snakes, Giant Travelly, Bludger\n");
document.write("Travellys. Maori Wrasses, Humpheads, Moray, Boxfish, Guitarfish and we\n");
document.write("don&acirc;€™t even mention the Anemonefish, the Gobies and the Blennies\n");
document.write("and all the other smaller fish.  We have never seen so many fish all\n");
document.write("together! You don&acirc;€™t know where to look. There is so much to\n");
document.write("see.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("We are the only divers on the wreck. That giant spiderlike diver is Phil\n");
document.write("with his camera. The butterfly in pink floating in a big cloud of yellow\n");
document.write("tailed fusiliers is Anne, with Kevin filming rare sharks not far away. As\n");
document.write("for my own dives, Sunday was great. Smooth and relaxed. No great air\n");
document.write("consumption. <br>\n");
document.write("We are back in the dive shop around 1 pm and after a tasty BBQ we are off,\n");
document.write("back to Cairns. Peter drives non stop and we arrive in Cairns around 8 pm.\n");
document.write("It was a perfect dive weekend, thanks guys, for all!<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("29 and 30 March 2008<br>\n");
document.write("Rigo and Jannemieke Van Meer<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<b><h2><i>Dive Report: POSEIDON Sunday 09 March 2008</b></h2></i><br>\n");
document.write("A 6.30 alarm bell is seldom a welcome sound! Fortunately today it meant\n");
document.write("diving and not work, so Andy and I needed little encouragement to get\n");
document.write("ourselves up and out. Last week&acirc;€™s flooding rains had left us a\n");
document.write("little pessimistic about the conditions on the day, but a quick poke\n");
document.write("through the blinds revealed pretty good news&acirc;€&brvbar; it\n");
document.write("wasn&acirc;€™t raining torrentially, and in fact the sun was doing its\n");
document.write("best to make a reasonable appearance for our day out.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("The drive up to Port Douglas is always a pleasure and gave us time to\n");
document.write("reflect on the beauty of the region in which we live as we wondered what\n");
document.write("the day had in store.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("A full 22 Nautilus members (including our special guest Yvonne from the\n");
document.write("Townsville dive club) had booked onto the Poseidon trip, making it a very\n");
document.write("social affair. Indeed the boat was fully booked with passengers.\n");
document.write("Fortunately we were very well looked after by the crew, many of whom were\n");
document.write("familiar from the same trip last year (always the sign of a quality\n");
document.write("operation), with particular thanks to Heidi who looked after our group for\n");
document.write("the whole day.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Following the customary teas and muffins on boarding (yum!), we set off\n");
document.write("for the Agincourt reefs as our skipper set out to find some calm waters.\n");
document.write("Unfortunately these were hard to come by, with choppy conditions from 25\n");
document.write("knot winds, leading several tourists to make good use of the brown paper\n");
document.write("bags. One poor fella spent the entire journey out being handed bag after\n");
document.write("bag by his very obliging and only slightly embarrassed girlfriend!\n");
document.write("Fortunately I had taken my Kwell tablet prior to leaving shore, but felt a\n");
document.write("little sorry for the fish-feeding tourists who must have wished\n");
document.write("they&acirc;€™d done the same, or possibly stayed home tucked up in\n");
document.write("bed!<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("The first dive site was on Agincourt 4, where the Nautilus members had the\n");
document.write("choice between a drift dive from Apostle or a boat to boat dive at Da\n");
document.write("Vinci&acirc;€™s. Most chose the former, leaving Heidi to emphasize to a\n");
document.write("certain club president to keep the reef on his right, as she&acirc;€™d\n");
document.write("heard some scandalous rumours that he had been known to wander off course\n");
document.write("from time to time. A few members were already feeling a tad let down by\n");
document.write("his low-key apparel today, sporting neither his Christmas Santa suit nor\n");
document.write("that truly sexy pink mask from the Lake Eacham trip on this occasion.\n");
document.write("Clearly standards are slipping!<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Andy and I, with a sprinkling of others, decided instead to go for the\n");
document.write("easy option and were pleasantly surprised with a nice coral garden in the\n");
document.write("bay with many unicorn fish and decent coral, with reasonable visibility of\n");
document.write("10-15m . Out on the reef wall we headed against the current into the path\n");
document.write("of the returning drift divers. Here there were again good corals and\n");
document.write("spectacular gorgonian fans, but little fish-life, the only notable\n");
document.write("exception being a solitary fairly large and surprisingly un-flusterable\n");
document.write("cuttlefish, who resolutely refused to change colour or, indeed ,do\n");
document.write("anything other than hang happily around us for a photo opportunity!<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("The 2nd site on Agincourt 3 was called Harry&acirc;€™s. Here we had a\n");
document.write("choice of two bommies, a large one the ambitious could swim around in 40\n");
document.write("minutes, or a smaller one which we shouldn&acirc;€™t attempt to swim round\n");
document.write("as it was too big! A little confused, but feeling we ought to be ambitious\n");
document.write("after piking out on the first dive, we decided to swim round the big one.\n");
document.write("Now I don&acirc;€™t know who Harry is, but he must be an important chap as\n");
document.write("his bommie turned out to be enormous, which combined with a very strong\n");
document.write("current around the far end transformed it from an ambitious 40 minute swim\n");
document.write("into a full-on battle to get more than a few centimetres ahead with each\n");
document.write("kick cycle. Deciding it was just too tough half way round I decided to\n");
document.write("quit. Unfortunately Andy misconstrued my request for a 5m, 3min safety\n");
document.write("stop as having 80Bar left, and he swum on into the distance. We ended up\n");
document.write("almost making it all the way back to the boat, surfacing after 50 minutes\n");
document.write("to find it not a million miles away. At least we&acirc;€™d earned our\n");
document.write("lunch, which turned out to be a sumptuous buffet. I was glad to learn we\n");
document.write("weren&acirc;€™t the only ones, a few others on the same route having\n");
document.write("struggled too. Fortunately most seemed to have picked the easier bommie\n");
document.write("and had a perfectly nice time!<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Dive 3 at Agincourt 1 was Castle Rock and was a fantastic end to the day.\n");
document.write("A great dive with no current and a large Malabar cod named Daisy who\n");
document.write("greeted us all on descent. Castle Rock is a smaller bommie easily\n");
document.write("circumnavigated a few times on the allotted dive time of 40mins. The\n");
document.write("fish-life was great with lots of schooling fusiliers, cardinalfish,\n");
document.write("butterflyfish and humbugs round the coral. We also encountered seal-faced\n");
document.write("pufferfish, trumpetfish, numerous large coral trout, blue-spotted\n");
document.write("stingrays, a large Maori wrasse and a playful turtle. Daisy seemed to\n");
document.write("follow us wherever we went and was clearly lapping up all the attention as\n");
document.write("she enjoyed having her photo taken (several hundred times!). I&acirc;€™m\n");
document.write("not sure if it was her good looks or mine, but eventually it was all too\n");
document.write("much and Andy&acirc;€™s camera died! The memory card is currently being\n");
document.write("assessed to see if anything can be salvaged! Hopefully Eden captured some\n");
document.write("good memories of the day.  <br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("All in all an excellent day, despite Andy failing to get me back to the\n");
document.write("boat on all 3 dives. Plainly it had been blind luck on the previous 50 or\n");
document.write("so occasions... I knew he couldn&acirc;€™t be that good really!<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Many thanks once again to the ever informative and extremely friendly and\n");
document.write("helpful crew of Poseidon. They went out of their way to give us drift dive\n");
document.write("options on all 3 dives and maximized our dive times with their efficient\n");
document.write("handling of the day&acirc;€™s schedule.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write(" Looking forward to next year&acirc;€™s trip already!<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("By Debbie Ratter<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<b><h2><i>Spirit of Freedom<br>\n");
document.write(" Cod Hole trip<br>\n");
document.write("March 3rd 2008</b></h2></i><br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("At the December 2007 club meeting, I was lucky enough to win the Tusa\n");
document.write("raffle,   a 3 day trip on Spirit of Freedom (SOF) to the Cod Hole.<br>\n");
document.write("On Monday the 3rd of March, whilst Cairns was being belted by substantial\n");
document.write("rains, my self and 23 other divers set off for the Cod Hole and next day\n");
document.write("were  basking under clear blue skies around the ribbon reef 10, close to\n");
document.write("Lizard Island.<br>\n");
document.write("To get us off on the right track, lunch on day one consisted of king\n");
document.write("prawns, smoked salmon and a great selection of fruits, cheese and\n");
document.write("nuts.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("The first dive on day one was an introductory dive on Saxon Reef so the\n");
document.write("dive crew could ascertain the skills of some of the divers, some of who\n");
document.write("had only just gained their underwater certificate. Unfortunately Saxon\n");
document.write("Reef lived up to its past with visibility of 5meters or less.<br>\n");
document.write("Not a good introduction to the GBR for the overseas visitors. Being a\n");
document.write("local, I passed it off as an unusual event (blame the weather).<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("My dive partners comprised  British, Canadian, American, German, Swedish, \n");
document.write("Japanese and Chinese. I was the only Australian apart from a couple of the\n");
document.write("crew (which numbered 12) , and naturally had to field many questions on\n");
document.write("the reef and Captain Cook, vegemite and many other strange things.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("On the morning of day 2 we woke at 6am anchored at the Cod Hole. SOF has\n");
document.write("two breakfasts, one prior to the first dive and a very substantial one\n");
document.write("after the second dive.<br>\n");
document.write("The first dive at the cod hole was very interesting, but mainly aimed at\n");
document.write("getting to 25 meters, during which we saw white tipped reef sharks,\n");
document.write("cuttlefish, and all the usual  including the very large potato cod.<br>\n");
document.write("The second dive saw all 24 divers kneeling in a large circle of some 15 to\n");
document.write("20meters in diameter with an instructor in the middle with cod food. Only\n");
document.write("one cod appeared for the feeding but was accompanied by dozens of Red\n");
document.write("Bass. The cod and the red bass get very agitated during the feed and we\n");
document.write("were warned to keep our hands behind our backs for obvious reasons. The\n");
document.write("instructor wore very large gloves as the cod seemed more intent on taking\n");
document.write("off his hand. These cod are huge.<br>\n");
document.write("We were asked prior to the &acirc;€śfeed&acirc;€ť if we were in agreement\n");
document.write("with the policy of feeding the Cod, and if we were not we could opt out of\n");
document.write("the participation. <br>\n");
document.write("The feed went as planned and we split into our buddy pairs and continued\n");
document.write("with the dive.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("The were 5 dives planned for each day, but my buddy and I (who was also a\n");
document.write("grandfather) decided that we were not as young as we used to be and opted\n");
document.write("for a rest in the sun.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("On day three at 6am we were anchored at a reef named Pixie Pinnacle. If\n");
document.write("you ever get a chance to dive this Bommie, do not let the opportunity\n");
document.write("pass.<br>\n");
document.write("This bommie is about 5 meters under the water,  and drops to 35 meters,\n");
document.write("contains the best fish life that I have ever seen, and I rate it as one\n");
document.write("the top 3 dives that I have done.<br>\n");
document.write("I often struggle to find nudibranchs, but I saw dozens on this dive, and\n");
document.write("something that not many divers see, nudibranch eggs, thin ribbons of red\n");
document.write("and yellow strands. We also saw many Pipe fish..<br>\n");
document.write("The top of the bommie must have at least a dozen or more large anemones\n");
document.write("with a multitude of resident &acirc;€śnemos&acirc;€ť<br>\n");
document.write("We saw many large banded shrimps, lion fish of many types and so many\n");
document.write("small fish of extraordinary colours.<br>\n");
document.write("It is hard to find the right words to describe the sight.<br>\n");
document.write("After bacon, eggs and coffee we were back on the pinnacle. A slight\n");
document.write("current had picked up during the surface interval time and we were\n");
document.write("presented with a large school of barracuda, and many other pelagic fish\n");
document.write("hovering just off the pinnacle.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("I have never heard so much chit chat after a dive in so many languages.\n");
document.write("Every body was raving about the dive.<br>\n");
document.write("If you want another opinion of Pixie Pinnacle, please look for Michael\n");
document.write("McFadyen web site on Google. <br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Those two dives were very hard to beat, so I won't bore you with any more\n");
document.write("dives, although the next dive was at Pixie Gardens, only a couple of\n");
document.write("hundred meters away, where we saw Leafy scorpion fish and more banded\n");
document.write("shrimp, and a large grey reef shark that had every body hopping. .<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("The last dive on the last day was quite memorable though, and one in\n");
document.write("hindsight that we ought not to have done. It was on a dive site named\n");
document.write("Snake Gully.<br>\n");
document.write("A big current was running with very choppy seas. We were told how to\n");
document.write("tackle the dive, as entry and exit would be quite difficult.<br>\n");
document.write("I was one of the first to enter the water and grab at the mooring line,\n");
document.write("but of course I misjudged the blasted thing and missed by a foot or two.\n");
document.write("When I gathered my senses I was a meter off the line and absolutely no\n");
document.write("hope of  getting back to it due to the strong surging current. <br>\n");
document.write("I had no option but to pump up my BC and float with the current. How often\n");
document.write("do we find the lookout, looking the wrong way. !!<br>\n");
document.write("After I had drifted a 100 meters or so, I was spotted and a zodiac was\n");
document.write("dispatched. Even so I was a couple of hundred meters off the SOF when the\n");
document.write("Zodiac arrived. It was a bit scary for a while as the swell was cutting\n");
document.write("off my view of SOF.<br>\n");
document.write("I must learn to operate that blasted safety sausage. As a club we ought to\n");
document.write("test our selves in very choppy seas (that is when they are most likely to\n");
document.write("be needed), and they can be a bit tricky with waves breaking over your\n");
document.write("head. <br>\n");
document.write("Imagine my surprise when we picked up three other drifting divers on the\n");
document.write("way back to the boat.<br>\n");
document.write("One was my buddy, Gene ; for a while I though that he had come to rescue\n");
document.write("me!. Another was a Japanese lass, who lost her fins, and the other was,\n");
document.write("Warren, a jolly man from Manchester, who went under the SOF at the start\n");
document.write("of his dive. All had problems with their safety sausages, so I was not the\n");
document.write("only dummy !<br>\n");
document.write("Most divers encountered problems with that dive, some used most of their\n");
document.write("air in the first 15 minutes.<br>\n");
document.write("The crew worked very hard in retrieving divers after their dive, as all\n");
document.write("had to be physically dragged back onto the boat and we all gave the crew \n");
document.write("a rousing thank-you yell at the debrief.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("However after a couple of Vodkas with my buddy and the man from\n");
document.write("Manchester, my nerves settled down, somewhat.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("The rains finally caught up with SOF on the last day, but by that time we\n");
document.write("were winging it back to Cairns.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("From time to time Tusa Dive offers discounted trips on SOF, do yourself a\n");
document.write("favour and take the trip of a lifetime, it is on our back door step after\n");
document.write("all is said and done.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Finally I would like to pass on my thanks to the SOF crew for a job very\n");
document.write("well done. It would be hard to find a more dedicated bunch of people.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Peter Farmilo,<br>\n");
document.write("Nautilus Secretary. <br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<b><h2> LADY BOWEN ON CALYPSO</b></h2>\n");
document.write("\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("On Sunday 3rd February 14 Club members assembled on the Clump Point Boat\n");
document.write("Ramp at Mission Beach for the much anticipated trip out to the\n");
document.write("&acirc;€śLady Bowen&acirc;€ť aboard Calypso I. This dive, with limited\n");
document.write("numbers, had been a sell out for months. <br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("The Lady Bowen was a turn of the Century (last Century) Paddle Steamer\n");
document.write("which sailed all the way out from England to Brisbane where it underwent a\n");
document.write("major refit to operate as a coastal trader. Unfortunately, on it&acirc;€™s\n");
document.write("maiden trip north it was driven up on a reef in a storm and sank. Bad news\n");
document.write("for the crew and passengers. Good news for Nautilus Divers 100 odd years\n");
document.write("later.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("The wreck was not found after the sinking and was finally discovered by\n");
document.write("some Nautilus members in the late 80s early 90s. My history gets a bit\n");
document.write("vague here.  <br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("The Diving gods were happy, the weather was excellent, and then we\n");
document.write("received a pleasant surprise &acirc;€“ we were to go out on the much\n");
document.write("larger and more comfortable Calypso II. <br>\n");
document.write("Once underway we received a brief but comprehensive briefing and then\n");
document.write("spread out to enjoy the trip.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Calypso I was already moored on the Lady Bowen so we were geared up and in\n");
document.write("the water very quickly. Visibility was problematic on the wreck, as it\n");
document.write("often is, but still a respectable 12 &acirc;€“ 15 metres, which you would\n");
document.write("settle for most days. It is often a lot worse. The wreck itself consists\n");
document.write("only of the metal hull (the entire wooden superstructure has rotted away)\n");
document.write("but this is imposing, especially the stern which is largely intact. The\n");
document.write("bow section is missing completely, believed to be torn off the ship when\n");
document.write("it hit the reef. The Lady Bowen is a relatively small wreck compared with\n");
document.write("for example the Yongala but still lots of fun.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("The Lady Bowen is famous for it&acirc;€™s sea snakes and it&acirc;€™s lion\n");
document.write("fish. The sea snake numbers were definitely down on this dive and, notably,\n");
document.write("there were only Olive snakes to be found where normally there are numerous\n");
document.write("banded snakes. However the Lionfish were present in big numbers, many as\n");
document.write("big as footballs. The stern of the vessel was completely obscured by a\n");
document.write("huge school of small fish which was pretty spectacular. <br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("There was also a report of a sighting of a Shovel nose ray on the first\n");
document.write("dive. <br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("All in all - a great day out. Top marks to Peter and the crew on Calypso.\n");
document.write("The whole day was very professional, very relaxed and very enjoyable. I\n");
document.write("felt we were treated as a group of experienced, competent divers yet we\n");
document.write("were given every advice we needed and assistance was always close at hand.\n");
document.write("Lunch was excellent and we even had the cricket to watch on the way home.\n");
document.write("This was my first dive on Calypso and I will be very much looking forward\n");
document.write("to the next one. <br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Peter Hayes<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<b><h2><i>Nautilus Club Dive</b></h2></i><br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Tusa V Sunday the 10th of February.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("A group of 9 Nautilus Club members met at E finger for the trip out to the\n");
document.write("reef on quite a fine morning.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("The boat was quite full with fellow water lovers, and after the usual\n");
document.write("introductions and other daily matters, we proceeded to the dive deck to\n");
document.write("gear up.<br>\n");
document.write("A note of warning. If you want a larger tank (like me) and do not want to\n");
document.write("drag yours from home to the boat, it is important to stake your claim on\n");
document.write("the few larger cylinders that Tusa V carries. <br>\n");
document.write("Ask the crew for one as soon as you get onto the boat.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("The horizon was very dark as we approached the reef, so we expected the\n");
document.write("weather to be not so pleasant, however you can&acirc;€™t get much wetter\n");
document.write("can you, and we would be better off than the snorkel people.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("The days diving was confined to Saxon and Hastings reefs with the first\n");
document.write("dive of the day at Twin Peaks. This is a lovely dive with a good depth of\n");
document.write("20 meters attained early to set the &acirc;€śdo not reverse\n");
document.write("profile&acirc;€ť instruction.<br>\n");
document.write("My buddies and I circumnavigated the peaks with a visibility of up to 10\n");
document.write("meters in most parts.<br>\n");
document.write("Whilst looking at the fantastic underwater sights, and following\n");
document.write("Judy&acirc;€™s silver fins, we were suddenly surrounded by at least a\n");
document.write("dozen light blue clad scuba divers, all wearing bright yellow fins. I\n");
document.write("quickly looked around for the black clad figure of James Bond or the\n");
document.write("strobe lights of the film crew. However when neither came into view, I\n");
document.write("figured that I had been transported to the dive site of a Jacques Yves\n");
document.write("Cousteau expedition. <br>\n");
document.write("They made a very pretty sight and then it occurred to me that Tusa\n");
document.write("supplies all other divers with these bright blue suits. They do add colour\n");
document.write("to the dive though, so why do we generally all wear black? <br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("On with the diving, with turtle, giant clams, barramundi cod, large wrasse\n");
document.write("and all the usual. Not that I saw many of these sights, but others\n");
document.write("did&acirc;€&brvbar;apparently.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("After a 45 minute dive and an hours surface interval time, we moved to a\n");
document.write("dive site on the &acirc;€świld side&acirc;€ť of Hastings  <br>\n");
document.write("Another interesting dive with the &acirc;€śblue clad&acirc;€ť brigade in\n");
document.write("close proximity.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("The crew had prepared a hearty meal of salads and cold meats during the\n");
document.write("dive, and after a good chat with our fellow Nautilus divers, we set off\n");
document.write("for the last dive of the day at Angel Bommie. Once again a very satisfying\n");
document.write("excursion into the depths. A juvenile lion fish, some colourful parrot fish\n");
document.write("and a couple of turtles were reported by club members.  <br>\n");
document.write("We also saw a blue and black crown of thorns star fish hiding under a\n");
document.write("piece of coral.<br>\n");
document.write("A solid shower of rain greeted our arrival on the surface, and after the\n");
document.write("usual &acirc;€śbedlam&acirc;€ť on the dive deck when the crew stows all\n");
document.write("the hire gear, we set off for port.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("All agreed that a great day&acirc;€™s diving was experienced, with the\n");
document.write("newer members enjoying the company of fellow Nautilus Club members.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Peter Farmilo.<br>\n");
document.write(" <br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<b><h2><i>Christmas Dive Report <br>\n");
document.write("December the 9th 2007.</b></h2></i><br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Arriving early for the trip on Reef Day Tripper was a plus as the vessel\n");
document.write("was fully booked and I was able to set up my dive gear before most of the\n");
document.write("others arrived. Considering how packed the vessel was the crew were\n");
document.write("extremely efficient and had us all stowed away neatly in short order.<br>\n");
document.write("Iris (one of the crew) gave the mandatory safety and boat briefing but\n");
document.write("kept it entertaining and brief. This allowed the members plenty of time to\n");
document.write("chat and relax on the way out to the reef and in my case to meet some newer\n");
document.write("members and read the Sunday paper in comfort. <br>\n");
document.write("The weather was warm and a mild breeze was blowing. There was very little\n");
document.write("swell the little vessel handling the conditions with ease and all augured\n");
document.write("well for the day out.<br>\n");
document.write("Our first dive on Upolu reef involved gently circumnavigating a large\n");
document.write("bommie. Some others chose to follow the walls out and back. Many varieties\n");
document.write("of parrot fish were in evidence and the obligatory spotting of\n");
document.write("&acirc;€śNemo&acirc;€ť as happens on most dives in the local area. Peter\n");
document.write("Farmillo my dive buddy and I were privileged to spot a single Hump head\n");
document.write("parrot fish. Unfortunately no sharks, manta rays or other exotic animals,\n");
document.write("though I was expecting something large to appear amongst a large school of\n");
document.write("scissor fish as we coasted past. All other member reports, of the first\n");
document.write("dive, indicated the relaxed nature of the dive was appreciated. Some of us\n");
document.write("were more relaxed than others as our President Dave decided to dive in a\n");
document.write("Santa suit. (Ho, Ho, Ho, we aren&acirc;€™t politically correct)<br>\n");
document.write("After a well presented lunch we moved to our second dive site on the same\n");
document.write("reef. The visibility on this dive unfortunately was not brilliant (8m) but\n");
document.write("we were there to have fun so still enjoyed the diving. The worst days\n");
document.write("diving is always better than the best day at work and this was certainly\n");
document.write("not the worst days diving.<br>\n");
document.write("The dive crew, Iris, Mark and Mark are to be commended for their attention\n");
document.write("to detail with personalised service. N othing seemed too much trouble for\n");
document.write("them as they ensured our trip was very enjoyable. Thank You!<br>\n");
document.write("The journey home was another gentle affair accompanied with some merriment\n");
document.write("with the sparkly and amber fluid flowing freely. Many tales were told and\n");
document.write("fun was had by all. The supply of Cheese and Biscuits supplied by Reef Day\n");
document.write("Tripper was much enjoyed.<br>\n");
document.write("This is what a dive club is all about; a great relaxing dive trip and\n");
document.write("comradeship.<br>\n");
document.write("Merry Christmas and Happy diving in 2008.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Dave Rosie<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<b><h2>Nautilus Club Dive.<br>\n");
document.write("Sunday the 11th of November 2007<br>\n");
document.write("TUSA V</b></h2>\n");
document.write("\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("A diverse group of 41 certified, intro divers and snorkellers were\n");
document.write("welcomed on board the new Tusa V dive boat by a staff of 10.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("The Nautilus Club comprised of 10 members, and after the preliminary\n");
document.write("instruction by staff we set off for Saxon Reef. <br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Fronting up for the Nautilus Club were Jannemieke and Rigo van Meer, Rob\n");
document.write("Beaman, shortly off the Antarctica, Dave Rosie, Mirek Woolwich, Peter\n");
document.write("Hayes, Greg Miller, Tracy Hale and Jorg Cove.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("First impressions of the new boat were very good, with plenty of room on\n");
document.write("the dive deck, new tanks and wet suits were on hand and a very attentive\n");
document.write("crew assisted us with our requests etc.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("The saloon is spacious, comfortable seating, tea and coffee with biscuits\n");
document.write("abounded. The air-conditioning was quite cool though.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Most of us had a good look at skipper&acirc;€™s new consoles, very\n");
document.write("impressive.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Our fist dive site was Magic Wall, where we stayed for the second dive as\n");
document.write("well. <br>\n");
document.write("( Tusa offers three dive on the new craft) <br>\n");
document.write("I was most impressed with the attention that the dive deck crew gave to\n");
document.write("the divers. For instance, as I get older I am tending to lose a bit of\n");
document.write("flexibility in my hips etc, and I was very appreciative when a crew member\n");
document.write("assisted me in helping me to put on my fins.<br>\n");
document.write("They also offered a helping hand at the conclusion of the dive.<br>\n");
document.write("If I could talk them into taking my weights and BC off me at the end of a\n");
document.write("dive,  it would really make my day.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Our first dive was just fantastic, and from comments that I heard, every\n");
document.write("one agreed. Vis was an impressive 25 meters, with all the usual suspect on\n");
document.write("hand to greet us. There were Titan Trigger fish busy preparing their nests,\n");
document.write("the odd Reef Shark lurking in the shadows, Turtles and some divers had an\n");
document.write("encounter with some Cuttle fish.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("In order the get a 30 minute surface interval time, our first dive was\n");
document.write("limited to 40 minutes or so.<br>\n");
document.write("After a quick snack we were in the water again, and experiencing similar\n");
document.write("conditions to the first dive.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Lunch on Tusa V is very impressive, with a great variety with meats,\n");
document.write("salads and fruit.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("A short trip along the reef to Twin Peaks was the site of the third dive.\n");
document.write("Quite different conditions greeted us on entering the water. The tide was\n");
document.write("changing and the current slightly stronger with visibility not quite as\n");
document.write("good... However the variety of sea life was still there.<br>\n");
document.write("After another good 40 minutes or so, we grouped in the water for a rather\n");
document.write("ungraceful exit from the water  onto the dive platform, which I am pleased\n");
document.write("to say is quite easy as the bottom step is a good meter under the\n");
document.write("water.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("After the usual hustle and bustle that goes on after a dive, we enjoyed\n");
document.write("some very tasteful cakes with tea and coffee and a pleasant trip back to\n");
document.write("Cairns.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("On a personal note, I enjoy this part of the dive trip as club members\n");
document.write("relive the dives, and generally discuss future dives and other diving\n");
document.write("matters. <br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Peter Farmilo.       <br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<b><i>DIVE REPORT  REEF MAGIC 9TH SEPTEMBER</b></i><br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Apologies for the lateness of this report. The accuracy of my\n");
document.write("recollections will be a great test of the robustness of my memory! Any\n");
document.write("corrections will be humbly accepted.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Having dived around Cairns for quite a few years I am becoming very\n");
document.write("selective of the weather in which I dive. Avoidance of 30knot southeast\n");
document.write("winds has become a high priority! Well, we really did get a great day this\n");
document.write("day. Less than 15 knots of wind made for a comfortable trip, and a very\n");
document.write("pleasant stay on the Reef Magic pontoon at Moore Reef.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("But that is not all. The staff went out of their way to give us two\n");
document.write("excellent drift dives. Both dives had boat drop offs and pick-ups at\n");
document.write("different locations, and the divemaster was an excellent guide showing us\n");
document.write("things we would not have found ourselves. She took us into some extensive\n");
document.write("swim throughs which we would not have found ourselves. It really makes a\n");
document.write("big difference to the day when we are treated differently to tourists, the\n");
document.write("staff are well organized, and make the extra effort.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("The first dive was on the Pinnacles, which are located away from the main\n");
document.write("reef in approx 18m. The current was strong which brought out big schools\n");
document.write("of fish including surgeonfish and some white tipped reef sharks.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("The second dive was Shark Alley, which as the name suggests, was home to\n");
document.write("some quite large white tipped reef sharks. I got quite shock when a large\n");
document.write("turtle, which apparently had been swimming along just above me, suddenly\n");
document.write("dived down less than a meter in front of me. The dive followed a wall with\n");
document.write("great vis, and lots of healthy corals.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Phil led a small group on an alternate second dive from the pontoon, and\n");
document.write("managed to find a large sea-hare. We do believe him, as he showed us the\n");
document.write("photographic proof. <br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Sandra bravely returned to the water after a long absence, to complete a\n");
document.write("successful dive. Congratulations Sandra.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Many thanks to the Reef Magic team for a great day out.<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("Tony Green<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("<b><i> Dive weekend on the Yongala - 27/29 July07</b></i><br>\n");
document.write("<br>\n");
document.write("The trip that was so anticipated, so eagerly, by so many, for so long, has\n");
document.write("finally passed by, into the past------but will remain forever in our\n");
document.write("memories as----------------another terrific Nautilus trip, another step\n");
document.write("into subaqua paradise, another aerobic workout far more taxing than\n");
document.write("spending a full week in the gym!!!<br>\n");
document.write(" <br>\n");
document.write("Not that fit lean swimming machines like Carl have any need to waste good\n");
document.write("eating and drinking time in such crazy pastimes :-) physical perfection\n");
document.write("that would stagger even Charles Darwin has already been achieved!<br>\n");
document.write(" <br>\n");
document.write("My day, your ambushed scribe, started at 1.30pm when I left Mossman\n");
document.write("Hospital to eat my steak pie looking for the Mowbray River croc. My high\n");
document.write("energy diet training for the trials to come were already being put into\n");
document.write("tasty practice.<br>\n");
document.write(" <br>\n");
document.write("No croc at home, so on to pick up my car buddy Frank for an early start to\n");
document.write("get there early----HA!<br>\n");
document.write(" <br>\n");
document.write("Well, we did arrive pretty early into Townsville. <br>\n");
document.write(" <br>\n");
document.write("I feasted on a McDonalds chicken thing, more dietry training---------and\n");
document.write("has anyone ever had one of the drinks from one of those places that use\n");
document.write("the syrup things, and top off with tap water? Is it just\n");
document.write("Townsville?-------but my god!! it tasted disgusting, OK, I realise where\n");
document.write("we were-------but I mean really disgusting------------and it was only when\n");
document.write("I had some water on the boat that I realised that if I lived in Townsville\n");
document.write("water area and had to drink that disgusting sewage all the time,\n");
document.write("dehydration would be a daily risk, it is truely RANK!!<br>\n");
document.write(" <br>\n");
document.write("Anyway, thoroughly nourished, I had also had two chocolate bars and Coke\n");
document.write("on the journey----we confidently followed my trusty GPS into the heart of\n");
document.write("Townsville, and we went round and round and round, and round again that\n");
document.write("beating heart of Townsville looking for the damned boat which was tucked\n");
document.write("round a corner in an invisible bit of the river. The only way to have\n");
document.write("found it  would have been to pay proper attention to Margits map!!!<br>\n");
document.write(" <br>\n");
document.write("I mean heck, navigation ain't for real divers.<br>\n");
document.write(" <br>\n");
document.write("Seen t\n");